Many companies and enterprises are faced with the need to choose a hosting for storing and processing their project data. Not everyone can afford to buy and maintain their own equipment — sometimes such costs are simply not justified. If your business requires server computing resources, but the capabilities and security of virtual rental types are not enough for you, dedicated server hosting will be the best solution.
In this article, we will tell you about dedicated server benefits and what to pay attention to when choosing one.
7 Best Benefits of Dedicated Server Hosting
Dedicated hosting benefits are quite large: you get your own powerful machine that isn’t shared with anyone else. That means more speed, better security and full control over how things work. Let’s take a closer look at the advantages that matter most.
1. Full Control Over the Server
Unlike other types of hosting, including Virtual Private Server (VPS/VDS), this service guarantees you the highest level of control. The ability to customize the server according to your requirements and preferences is an important advantage of a dedicated server. Such rent gives you greater freedom and flexibility in management, and also allows you to restrict access to all or certain data. Even the hosting provider cannot change anything on the server that he allocated to the client.
2. Performance
Compared to virtualized solutions like cloud hosting, dedicated servers always provide better performance. Even if the number of CPU cores, RAM, and disk space seem the same, there are several factors that make dedicated servers more efficient.
Virtual servers and cloud solutions often offer savings on dedicated resources. So, if you purchased a dual-core virtual machine but are only using half of the core's capacity, you can save by choosing a plan that allows you to allocate unused capacity to other users. In the case of a dedicated server, you get 100% of the performance and capacity without any losses, but this will not allow you to pay a more competitive price. This is one of the important dedicated server benefits.
The performance of a dedicated server directly depends on the characteristics of the selected equipment — the clock frequency of the processor, the type and frequency of memory, the type of disks. For example, a 5.3 GHz processor will work faster than a 2.4 GHz processor, just as NVMe disks will be faster than HDDs. All components (both computing and the disk system on which data is stored) are located on a single motherboard, data is transferred between components via high-speed buses. You can choose a processor, RAM and disk depending on your needs and tasks. In any case, you can get the most out of this equipment because you will be its only user.
3. Security
A high level of confidentiality is one of the dedicated hosting benefits, which is why DS is most often chosen. The complete absence of neighbors, and therefore dependence on their actions, makes this type of rent the most secure. Since you control the server alone, you also take all protective measures: configure a firewall, install an antivirus, restrict access, etc.
For those who value security, dedicated servers provide a high level of protection. Physical access to the server is more strictly controlled than in the case of alternative configurations. Dedicated servers in specialized data centers provide an additional level of physical security, which also simplifies compliance with standards.
Usually modern servers are equipped with 2 power supplies, 2 or more power lines. In this case, if the disk fails, the data will be saved and the server will continue to work without downtime. A dedicated server is one of the most fault-tolerant services. Availability problems can only arise in the event of a malfunction of the data center network equipment.
4. Better Reliability and Uptime
Using a dedicated server almost completely eliminates the risks associated with "neighbors" on virtual or shared servers. Users can use firewalls, specialized software for information protection, and strict security policies. This minimizes the risk of data interception or hacking through vulnerabilities of neighboring resources.
This dedicated server benefit is very important for projects that critically require data protection (healthcare, finance, large businesses). A dedicated server is guaranteed to provide an increased degree of flexibility and control, thanks to which companies achieve high security indicators.
An important dedicated server benefit is also the uptime indicator. The higher it is, the more likely it is that the resource will work without failures. Clients will always have access to your site, which will have a positive effect on the company's reputation and its financial results.
The uptime for dedicated servers is 99.9%. This means that interruptions of up to 43 minutes and 12 seconds per month are allowed.
5. Custom Software and Hardware Configurations
Using a dedicated server provides the ability to quickly configure it for the specific needs of the site. The user will be able to quickly scale the server's capacity, add the necessary resources and update the hardware components. This is very important for meeting the growing needs of the project.
One of the dedicated server benefits is the option to install any necessary software. This is important for projects that require the use of specially configured software.
The client to whom the hoster has allocated such a server is not limited in any way in choosing the operating system and software environment. This is one of the important hosting benefits that a dedicated server provides.
6. Improved SEO and User Experience
The placement of a website in search engines directly depends on the quality of the hosting. Here are several factors that can be associated with the hosting provider and affect the promotion of the website:
- Download speed: The speed of loading a website is an important indicator for search engines. If the hosting does not provide a prompt connection, this can negatively affect the search results.
- Server reliability: Constant problems with the availability of the website and its operation can cause a loss of trust on the part of visitors and search engines.
- Technical support: The efficiency of its work and the quality of problem solving will ensure the smooth operation of the resource.
The influence of the correct choice of a dedicated server on the website's performance in promotion is very great. This can significantly increase the results of the website in search engines, increase traffic and conversions.
Important hosting benefits of a dedicated server are high loading speed and increased reliability. You can be sure that your resource will always be available to users.
7. Access Management
Dedicated servers provide administrative or "root" access, giving you complete control over the device's hardware and software. This level of access is not available when sharing resources with other users.
What should you consider when choosing a DS?
When choosing a dedicated server, you need to determine the hardware requirements for the project. The specificity of requests depends on the specific task, be it deploying a website or backing up data. You can select a server configuration based on certain parameters. Let's consider each parameter in more detail.
Processor
There are two parameters that characterize processors: frequency and number of cores. High-frequency cores are suitable for certain tasks, regardless of their number. For other tasks that support large flows and parallel computing, it is better to use low-frequency cores with a multi-core CPU.
For example, Xeon Gold and Xeon Silver servers are great for virtualization tasks or when you need to encode video, since they have multi-core processors. In turn, Intel Xeon E-series servers with high-frequency processors are an excellent option for hosting 1C databases. If you have licensed software that is priced per core, you can select the minimum number of processor cores with the maximum frequency of each core. Inexpensive options include Intel Xeon E3 or E5, if there is no need for high processor performance.
RAM
Server memory is also divided into several components, which are located at varying distances from the central processor. The closest to it is the processor cache, then comes RAM and then disk drives.
It is better to have more memory so that applications can store the maximum amount of their data as close to the processor as possible and, accordingly, increase their performance.
Network interface bandwidth
As standard, providers have 1G (one gigabit per second) and 10G (10 gigabits per second) Ethernet ports. All servers usually have two 1G ports built in, 10G are installed separately. Ports are used to access the Internet and form a local network. For the first option, 1G is enough, for the second, 10G will do.
Disk drives
Modern recording devices, or rather a small part of them, use HDD (magnetic disks), while SSD has a chip type. When choosing a disk subsystem, you need to pay attention to the following parameters: access time, capacity and price, which are very closely related to each other. So, SATA disks have a large volume, are inexpensive, but their availability over time is high. SSDs have shorter access times and expensive prices (if converted to gigabytes). If you plan to store databases or a partition with boot, then two small SSDs will do, SATA is suitable for backups or large statistical content.
An important component is data storage. Servers with SSDs in RAID arrays are suitable for this. If one or more disks fail, the data will still be available.
Conclusion
Dedicated servers give you your own space, speed, and full control. They’re great if you need strong performance, better security and no sharing with others.
If your website or project is growing and needs more power, a dedicated server is a smart choice.